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Ever heard of Site Waste Management Plans ?

Posted: 04/02/2007

NetRegs, the Environment Agency website, say that in a survey of 402 companies this year, over 60% did not know what Site Waste Management Plans were. This is despite the fact that the plans will be required from April 2008 for all projects above £200,000 in value.

The NetRegs website, which advises small businesses on complying with environmental legislation, is now urging construction companies to take early action over their waste.

Backed by the construction industry and the Department of Trade and Industry, NetRegs is launching a new campaign called "Site Waste – It's Criminal" which stresses the financial and environmental benefit of site waste plans. The plans include a free PDF guide, and will set out measures to improve the environmental impact of building works and cut waste.

The downloadable guide - "Site Waste - It's Criminal" aims to help protect the environment - SWMPs help to manage and reduce the amount of waste that construction projects produce and that means less waste going to landfill. There are many other environmental benefits including less harm to the local environment, less fly tipping, reduced energy consumption and a greater take up of recycled materials, says the introduction to the guide.

Some useful facts - the average 8 cubic yard skip costs around £150. The average cost of what is being thrown away in that skip is over £1,200. In the UK an average of 13% of all materials delivered to site go into the skip without ever being used.

The UK produces around 400 million tonnes of waste annually, of which about 72 million tonnes comes from construction sites. The construction industry produces the equivalent of five tonnes of waste for every single person in the UK.

Richard Martin, Programme Manager at NetRegs, said: "'Site Waste - It’s Criminal' is designed to help construction businesses better understand the importance of SWMPs while providing practical guidance on how to prepare for them becoming law. It’s not just the legal implications they need to consider, but also the huge amount of money they could save."

To find out more about SWMPs and download the guide, visit: http://www.netregs-swmp.co.uk/simple-guide.pdf

Green Building Press  
 

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